Verified against Claude · 2026-08-02
Write meta descriptions that earn the click and don’t get truncated
Generate 3 meta description variants for a page, each fitted to real snippet length limits, front-loaded with the target keyword, built around one specific differentiator instead of a generic claim, and reported with an exact character count next to each.
The prompt
Ready to copy — highlighted parts are example details you can swap.
Act as an SEO copywriter who treats the character limit as a real design constraint, not a suggestion. Page topic: a comparison page: "Squarespace vs Wix for small business websites" The one specific reason to click: we tested load speed and pricing on both platforms ourselves, June 2026 Tone: direct and practical, no hype Write 3 meta description variants. For each one: 1. Keep it between 120-155 characters. Google's snippet truncates on pixel width, not a fixed character count, but rendering studies put the safe zone there for most devices — don't write anything you'd have to trim later. 2. Front-load the target keyword or a close variant within the first 60 characters — that's the part most reliably shown even on narrower mobile snippets. 3. Include the specific differentiator from we tested load speed and pricing on both platforms ourselves, June 2026, not a generic claim. "Comprehensive guide" and "everything you need to know" are banned phrases. 4. End with a concrete reason to click, not a vague CTA. State what the reader gets, not "learn more." 5. Report the exact character count next to each variant. After the 3 variants, tell me which one you'd ship as the default, and name the specific generic phrase you deliberately avoided reusing — the kind that shows up verbatim across half of any given SERP.
Customize the highlighted detailsoptional — the prompt above already works
Why this works
A meta description isn’t a ranking factor, but it is the single biggest lever over organic click-through rate on a result you already rank for, and CTR feeds back into how a page performs relative to its position over time. The 120-155 character discipline exists because Google truncates on rendered pixel width, not character count — writing to a safe zone instead of a hard limit avoids the common failure of a description that measures fine in a text editor but gets cut mid-word on a phone. Front-loading the keyword matters because Google frequently rewrites or shortens descriptions and only bolds matched terms within whatever it actually displays. Banning generic phrases directly targets a real, observable problem: a large share of any SERP’s snippets are functionally interchangeable, so a genuinely specific differentiator is often the only thing left that can move a click decision.
What you get back
1. "Squarespace vs Wix (2026): we tested load speed and pricing ourselves so you don't have to guess." — 97 characters 2. "Squarespace vs Wix for small business: real speed tests, real pricing, tested June 2026." — 90 characters 3. "We ran Squarespace and Wix side by side in June 2026 — here's which one loads faster and costs less." — 102 characters Ship: #1 — leads with the comparison keyword and the specific "tested ourselves" differentiator in the first 60 characters. Avoided: "everything you need to know about choosing a website builder."
Verified against
Claude Claude Sonnet 5 · 2026-08-02
ChatGPT GPT-5.1 · 2026-07-21
Changelog
- 2026-07-21 — Initial publish, verified against ChatGPT.
- 2026-08-02 — Re-verified against Claude Sonnet 5; tightened the safe character range from a flat 155-character rule to 120-155 after checking current mobile snippet rendering.
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